Lonely Lonely
by LifeIChose
Summary: Lonely Lonely, that was you. Lonely Lonely, that was me.   Sequel to 'A Hand at Dusk.' Bonnie and Damon after the summer.


**Author's Note**: I still don't own these characters.

Thanks to the reviews for 'A Hand at Dusk,' I decided to write a sequel. This is for those who requested one and who motivated with their kind words.

Thank you for reading.

* * *

><p>Old habits die hard.<p>

Damon is good at doing the wrong thing and self-destructive tendencies.

He could try to be better but lately it hasn't been feeling worth it.

Evil returns from its vacation around the same time that most Mystic Falls residents do.

He fights in the good fight because Alaric asks him to.

His interactions with Bonnie are minimal but watching her with Jeremy Gilbert leaves him feeling much more than he would like to.

Elena's sadness becomes all the more pronounced once the routine of school begins.

She is resplendent in her sorrow.

Damon gives up on turning her down.

_Lonely Lonely that is you_

* * *

><p>Caroline bounces back better than all of them.<p>

She comes back to Mystic Falls with a more understanding Mrs. Forbes, no longer Sherriff, and starts a relationship with Tyler Lockwood.

Caroline watches her two best friends with their boyfriends and feels something is amiss.

She remembers the peace that radiated from Elena when Stefan was around and the genuine way that Bonnie seemed to glow when she was with Jeremy and notices that post-summer both girls' smiles seem disingenuous.

"You are happy, right?" Caroline asks Bonnie at the Grille one night.

Bonnie's eyes follow Caroline's to where Jeremy and Tyler are playing pool.

Jeremy catches Bonnie's eye and grins.

It is a grin that would have melted Bonnie's heart before but now seems lukewarm.

She turns to look at Caroline and speaks the truth that she had previously refused to admit even to herself. "I'm not sure I know how to be happy anymore."

_Lonely Lonely that is me_

* * *

><p>She slips.<p>

She is so good at doing the right thing but it is becoming harder to discern what that is.

Before there was good and evil but over the past year the line has become so blurred that sometimes she is unsure what side she is on.

Bonnie thinks of Stefan who rumour has it is nearing Mystic Falls.

There have been murders in nearby towns with hints left behind for them. Klaus is playing a game that leaves them all confused and on edge.

It is a tired feeling.

* * *

><p>"I shouldn't have come here," she says, leaning against the door and trying to calm her erratic heart.<p>

Damon's eyes darken. "Then why did you?"

She touches her lips which feel swollen from the kiss she has just pulled away from.

"I don't know."

"Bullshit." Damon says, stepping into her space.

Bonnie shakes her head. "I should go."

He looks at her with an expression she can't read before stepping away from her.

She reaches for the door handle, half-expecting and wanting him to stop her.

He doesn't and she walks out, her lips tingling and her head hung low.

* * *

><p>She kisses Jeremy as if her life depends on it, which right now it feels like it does.<p>

She thinks of Damon's lips on hers just hours earlier and pushes away the guilt; tries to turn it into lust.

Jeremy stops the hands that are slipping into his jeans. "What's going on?"

His face is earnest, his brown eyes full of concern and understanding.

This is the moment that she knows with certainty that she no longer loves him.

Tears fill her eyes and Jeremy takes her into his arms.

She cries into his chest and wishes she could go back in time.

* * *

><p>Damon hears about Bonnie and Jeremy's break up from Elena.<p>

She is disentangling herself from his arms, reaching for her shirt.

"I probably won't be back for a couple of days," she says. "Jeremy needs me."

Damon sneers. "Why? I thought him and the witch were joined at the hip."

Elena turns around to face him as she buttons her shirt. "They broke up."

"Oh?" His brain is now on overdrive and it is the only thing he can think to say.

"Yeah," Elena answers absently as she slips on her jeans. "He's pretty upset about it. He feels like it came out of nowhere."

Damon tries to keep his face neutral and stays silent.

Elena brushes her lips against his briefly. "I'll call you later."

Damon pulls her closer and kisses her deeply.

Elena gives him a questioning look when they pull apart.

He ignores the look and kisses her on the forehead.

After she leaves, he wonders when it was exactly that he stopped loving her.

He rubs his eyes and thinks of his brother.

It occurs to him then that maybe it was never really about Elena but about Stefan.

* * *

><p>Damon wages an internal war with himself as to whether to go to her.<p>

Every time he has confessed his love in the past he has ended up feeling like shit.

He thinks of Bonnie and knows that his feelings for her are real.

It's not about a competition with his brother, or not wanting to be alone.

It may have started out as the latter but by the end of summer, he knew it was something more.

He pours himself a drink.

It may be pathetic but he needs a little liquid courage to face her.

* * *

><p>"Are you okay?" Bonnie asks as she comes up to a forlorn looking Elena at the Grille.<p>

Elena looks up at her and pats the seat next to her.

Bonnie sits down and waits for Elena to speak.

"Damon and I broke up."

Bonnie blinks in surprise. "I'm so sorry, Elena," she says and means it. "What happened?"

Elena takes her time before answering and Bonnie begins to feel a sense of panic.

"Did you see Damon this summer?" Elena asks and Bonnie's fears are confirmed.

It is a question that Elena had asked her casually when she returned.

At the time, Bonnie had shrugged. "Not really."

Bonnie looks at the girl she considers family and can't bring herself to lie again. "I'm so sorry."

"How could you not tell me?"

Bonnie's eyes fill with tears as she thinks of all she is about to lose. "I don't know how it started. We were both lonely and no one was around. I didn't want to tell you because it didn't mean anything and I didn't want you to look at me like you are looking at me now. "

Elena grabs Bonnie's hands. "I would have understood."

As she considers Elena's words, something occurs to her. "How did you find out?"

"I had this feeling that something happened this summer and soon after I told Damon that you broke up with Jeremy, he kissed me like he was trying to prove something. Damon doesn't realize it, but I know him, and I know you."

"I'm so sorry," Bonnie whispers again knowing that the words aren't enough.

Elena squeezes the hands that she is still holding. "I know but you don't need to be. Damon and I were never really right."

Bonnie thinks of her relationship with the vampire over the summer.

Even with the guilt, it had been so easy; so simple. It had felt good.

* * *

><p>Her feet feel heavy as she walks up to his doorway.<p>

The door swings open before she can knock.

Damon is at the door, leather jacket in hand.

"Hi," she greets meekly.

He cocks his head to one side, his eyebrows raised.

She shakes her head. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have come."

His hand grabs hers before she can take one step.

"This has got to stop."

"What?" she asks, her breath ragged from their close proximity.

"You walking away from me."

She kisses him.

* * *

><p>"This is about more than sex. For me." he says, his lips against her caramel shoulder.<p>

She twists around. "I know."

Blue eyes stare intensely at her and she understands that he needs more from her. Needs her to say more, offer more.

"This summer, it was real to me."

He closes his eyes briefly and when he opens them again, they are the darkest blue.

"You are not going anywhere."

She thinks of Elena's words from only hours earlier.

"_You and Damon are more alike than I realized. You are so strong, stubborn and independent. This is weird but I think you could be great together."_

She smiles brightly. "No, I'm not."

* * *

><p><strong>Song Credit: <strong>Feist – Lonely, Lonely

**The End. **


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